


Living the Fairytale

by resonae



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Sentinels & Guides, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-19
Updated: 2014-08-19
Packaged: 2018-02-13 19:42:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 4
Words: 16,782
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2162751
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/resonae/pseuds/resonae
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sentinel!AU In which Baekhyun wakes as an impossibly strong Sentinel, Yifan is a Guide who's vowed never to get close to a Sentinel again, and the world has other plans.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

“If _I_ were a Sentinel,” Baekhyun said, rolling his eyes and stabbing a piece of tonkatsu to feed Yifan, “I would never do that to my Guide. That there is a bastard.” He shook a finger at the TV, and Yifan slid his gaze to the screen. There was news about how a Sentinel had been arrested for imprisoning and torturing his Guide.

 

Yifan wiped his lips with the back of his hand. “Happening often recently, don’t you think?”

 

Baekhyun ate a piece himself and forked up another one for Kris. “It just means the police are starting to crack down on them. I heard that they got this new Guide that is super sensitive to everything, so they’re having an easier time catching all these Guides that are being abused. Maybe it’ll help all those Guides who are hiding their status come out, too.”

 

Yifan nodded, slowly chewing before he responded, “Do you think Guides should all come out?”

 

Baekhyun shrugged. “If the problem of abusive Sentinels get locked away, why not?”

 

Yifan didn’t say anything in response and just opened his mouth for more. Baekhyun fed him, his eyes focused on the news again. Yifan could think of a lot of problems. Guides who were imprinted onto Sentinels all but lost their personal lives. People made it sound like they had a choice, and that they could have their lives, but Guides had to be at the Sentinel’s beck and call. If a Sentinel ended up exploding because a Guide wasn’t available, the Sentinel barely got a slap on the wrist while the Guides were fitted with a tracking chip.

 

It was _for the good of society_ , the government said. Since Sentinels were technically more useful than Guides were, especially in war, the government put their rights up more. It didn’t matter that Guides who were sent off to war with their Sentinels often got driven insane because of the PTSD and unnaturally severe emotions floating everywhere.

 

Of course, and when the imprint got broken, it was the Guide who was left with a big hole in their lives. Sentinels had superhuman senses and physical abilities, but their emotional facilities were normal. A broken imprint to them was about the same as a break up. Maybe a bad breakup, but nothing they couldn’t get over. Guides, with their sense finely attuned to emotions, suffered horribly. Most fell into depression and some even went insane because of the pain. Yifan would know.

 

Because he was an estranged Guide.

 

\--

 

It was one of the reasons why he’d decided to leave Canada. It hurt to leave his mother behind, but it hurt more to stay there and watch his ex-Sentinel hook his arms around a new Guide. He’d only been 16. High school was already dramatic enough.

 

Not many people imprinted when they were so young, but Yifan’s imprinting had been an accident. He’d hid his identity as a Guide back then, too, so no one knew. His Sentinel had his awakening after they started dating, and as two people who weren’t quite certain on what they were doing, they’d imprinted on each other.

 

He’d been happy. More than happy. His Sentinel had been warm and affectionate, pressing kisses onto Yifan whenever and wherever, growling at anyone who tried to even touch Yifan. Yifan thought it might have been easier, if only his Sentinel had been rude. Abusive.

 

But even their breakup had been kind, except that Yifan felt like his heart was being torn out of his chest. It was full of gentle hand holds and soft hugs, with his Sentinel’s soft voice asking _you understand, right?_

 

Yifan had nodded without really understanding. That night, he went home and cried until he fell unconscious. He’d gone to school with a smile plastered on his face, but he’d cried every night, gasping for breath and drowning under the pain for months afterward.

 

Yifan rubbed his chest in an attempt to ease the emptiness that felt so big every time he remembered. Baekhyun noticed. “Something went down wrong? Want some water?”

 

“Huh? Oh. No, I’m okay. Just burned a little.”

 

Baekhyun clicked his tongue. “It’s not even hot. Duizhang, you’re getting old.”

 

Yifan liked the way Baekhyun talked. Chanyeol and Baekhyun and Jongdae usually talked in rapid Korean, but whenever Baekhyun was talking to Yifan, his voice got soft and he talked slower. (Joonmyeon called it his ‘boyfriend voice’.) It wasn’t like that when he talked to Zitao or Yixing or Luhan, so Yifan had once pointed out that Baekhyun didn’t have to talk slow just for him, and that he could understand even if he talked fast. But Baekhyun had shrugged and answered, “I don’t know why I do it, either. I just like talking to duizhang like that.”

 

That was another thing Yifan liked. Baekhyun sometimes called him _hyung_ , but most of the times he called Yifan _duizhang._ One of the things he liked about Korea was the _hyung_ - _dongsaeng_ culture, and he’d insisted everyone younger than him call him _hyung_. He also liked going up to anyone older and calling them _hyung_ , but for some reason he liked it better when Baekhyun called him duizhang. Maybe it was the way Baekhyun’s voice softened around the words. Maybe it was the smile Baekhyun always accompanied it with.

 

He liked a lot of things about Baekhyun. Like the way Baekhyun insisted on feeding him instead of getting a fork for himself. Like the way Baekhyun smiled, and laughed, and talked.

 

Maybe he just liked Baekhyun because he was Baekhyun.

 

But he wasn’t willing to go down that route yet. Yifan rubbed at his chest again, and Baekhyun got up. He was back with a cup of water, and Yifan took it with a snort.

 

Not yet. Or maybe not ever.

 

\--

 

“I think Jongin or Chanyeol would make good Sentinels. Zitao, too? And Minseok hyung?” Baekhyun said, playing with his phone with his head in Yifan’s head.

 

Yifan raised an eyebrow, his hand resting on Baekhyun’s head. “Yeah?”

 

“Yeah. But you wouldn’t, I think. Because you know. You’re all big, but you’re all flimsy. You lost to everyone in arm wrestling, remember?” Baekhyun snickered, thumbing something into his phone.  


Yifan balked. “You lost to _me,_ remember that?”

 

“Yeah, but I’m like way smaller! Anyway, on that topic, you gotta gain some weight, duizhang. You’ve been losing it lately. I’m like trying to feed you fattening things but you keep losing it!” Baekhyun put his phone down and grinned up at Yifan, rubbing Yifan’s cheek.

 

\--

 

Yifan felt the pulse shock through him at night and he found himself bolting up, his eyes wide as he clutched his hands to his chest. Another throb sliced through him, and he shot up, kicking his blankets off. Jongdae was peacefully asleep, so Yifan burst out the door, going room by room. Minseok and Zitao’s room was quiet, and so was Luhan and Yixing’s. His heart hammered in his chest. His hands slipped on the door handle, and he was met with a clatter of noises as soon as he stepped out into the hallway.

 

It sounded like a lot of yelling. Overwhelming panic and surprise made him nauseous and he punched in K’s security code as fast as he could.   


He slammed the door open to find Chanyeol on the floor, clutching his heavily bruised cheek. “Hyung!” Chanyeol cried, when he saw Yifan. “Get out of here, it’s Baekhyun- he’s – I think he’s-“

 

 _Baekhyun_.

 

Yifan’s heart sank as Joonmyeon and Jongin tried to hold a door back, barricading it with the sofa, but the door splintered with a loud crack. “Joonmyeon, take the others and _get into the M dorm_. Call the managers.”

 

Joonmyeon turned to him, his eyes large. “What about you?!”

 

“Don’t worry about me. I’ve gone through this before. Now _go_.” Yifan shoved the couch away. He didn’t even have to open the door – it crumbled off its hinges. Baekhyun was standing in the middle of the destroyed room, and he dove toward Yifan. Joonmyeon yelled and Yifan braced himself, letting Baekhyun tackle him.

 

They went skidding through the living room, Yifan’s head crashing into the balcony window that thankfully held. From the corner of his eyes Yifan saw Sehun try to get close. “No! Sehun, don’t get any clo-“ He broke off in a wince as Baekhyun’s fingers dug into his arms, nails easily slicing through his skin. Sehun let out a chocked cry and tried to get closer. “No! I’m fine. I’m _okay_. Just leave.”

 

Baekhyun snarled. Yifan looked up at the younger man on top of him, the whites of his eyes red where the veins had burst. His skin was burning to the touch.

 

Baekhyun was awakening as a Sentinel, and it was taking over. It happened for all awakening, except most of them were in controlled settings. Lucky ones had a Guide to make sure nothing went wrong from the beginning, but from what Yifan could tell, Baekhyun probably couldn’t have been controlled to start with. The real Baekhyun underneath was unconscious, Yifan knew. It was just his Sentinel instincts running the show.

 

Yifan’s left arm bruised easily under Baekhyun’s squeezing, his nails digging in deep enough to cut to the white bone underneath, but the shout that sounded wasn’t his own. He glanced up to see Kyungsoo nearby, and before he could tell Kyungsoo to back off, Kyungsoo and Minseok – when had Minseok got here? – were pulling Baekhyun off. Sehun was kneeling next to him. “Oh _god_ , _hyung_.”

 

“No, wait, stop! You’re going to hurt yourselves.” It didn’t matter how strong normal humans were. Baekhyun was a Sentinel. A _waking_ Sentinel. There was no way they could stand his strength. Baekhyun threw off Minseok and Kyungsoo easily, sending them crashing into the couch, and before he could turn toward them instead, Yifan shook Sehun off and tackled Baekhyun, grabbing him around the waist and sending both of them to the floor.

 

Baekhyun let out a growl and grabbed him, throwing him off and then biting into his shoulder. _Ow_ , Yifan thought, but bit his lips to keep from crying out even as Baekhyun tore his skin away. He heard Zitao let out a frantic cry instead, and Yifan grabbed Baekhyun’s shirt, tearing it to wipe away at the blood on Baekhyun’s lips as he spat out onto the ground.

 

Before Baekhyun could do anything else, he grabbed Baekhyun’s chin with his good arm and brought their mouths crashing together.

 

Baekhyun fought for a moment, his nails digging into Yifan’s back and slicing long cuts into his skin, but he soon went slack against Yifan, falling heavily into Yifan’s chest. Yifan fell on his heels, realizing just now that he’d come barefoot into the dorm. There was a heavy silence in the room as Yifan held Baekhyun with his one good arm, until the door lock beeped an urgent combination and swung open.

 

“What the _hell_ happened here?!”

 

\--

 

Chanyeol’s face was thankfully just bruised. Baekhyun’s injuries were mostly shallow cuts, but he had a fracture in his left arm. All of them were pretty much healed by the time the doctors were done checking him over. Accelerated healing, Yifan thought, slightly thankful. One of the characteristics of a Sentinel.

 

Yifan, on the other hand, needed a full on wrap for his left wrist and stitches for his shoulder, his arms, and his back. He blinked up at the white ceiling as he came to, unsure when he’d even passed out. He’d been awake for the checkup. His head was hazy from painkillers, but he felt the hand in his. “Hey,” Luhan said, coming into his line of sight. “How are you feeling?”

 

“I’m okay.”

 

Luhan looked like he had a hard time believing, but visibly struggled with himself on not pointing that out. He instead said, “So, you’re a Guide.”

 

There was no way to deny it, especially after what had happened in the dorm. He struggled to sit up and Luhan stopped him, raising the angle of the bed instead. Yifan looked around to find Baekhyun in the other bed. He wasn’t muzzled, but he was tied to the bed, his hand in Yifan’s. “How is he?”

 

“He’s going to be okay. It was a pretty bad awakening, but thankfully you were there. They’re keeping him tied down for now, but at least they didn’t shackle him. And he’s not in a containment unit. His brain waves are normal. He’ll probably have a headache when he wakes up, but that’s nothing compared to…” Luhan trailed off, his eyes glancing over Yifan. “He’ll probably feel guilty when he wakes up. But at least since you’re his Guide-”

 

“No.” Yifan snapped. Luhan looked up, surprised. “I’m not – I can’t be his Guide.”

 

Luhan looked floored. “What? But obviously the two of you are compatible. And it’ll make everyone’s life easier, too. Baekhyun won’t need a Guide trailing along for all of his schedules, we won’t need someone random hanging out in the dorms all the time, and-“ Luhan trailed off, frowning lightly. “Baekhyun isn’t going to hurt you, Yifan.”

 

Yifan’s voice sounded wrecked when he found it. “I know. I know. I just – I just can’t. Don’t make me do this.”

 

Luhan’s frown didn’t leave him. But after a while, he took Yifan’s hand, and his voice was gentle when he spoke again. “All right. I’ll let the manager hyungs know. Go to sleep. I’ll make sure they know.”

 

And because Yifan could feel Luhan’s sincerity flowing from his hands, he gripped Baekhyun’s hand a little tighter before he fell asleep again.

 

\--

 

When he woke up again, he realized the one sitting by his bedside wasn’t Luhan. “Hey,” he told Baekhyun, who looked up at his voice. Baekhyun had dark circles intense enough to battle Zitao’s. “How are you feeling?”

 

Baekhyun barked out a humorless laugh. “I should be asking _you_ the question.”

 

Yifan ignored it. “Your arm doing okay?”

 

Baekhyun shot back, “How’s _your_ arm?”

 

“It wasn’t your fault, Baekhyun. It happens when Sentinels are waking.” Yifan tried to sit up, and Baekhyun stopped him. They sat in silence for a while, Baekhyun’s hand still in Yifan’s.

 

It was Baekhyun who broke the silence. “Why don’t you want to be my Guide?” He sounded vulnerable. “Is it because of what just happened? If it is, I can swear to you it won’t happen again. I wouldn’t – I would never hurt you. You _know_ that. I just – I lost control, but it’s like you said, it happens when Sentinels are waking, and I won’t – I’ll never hurt you.”  


Yifan squeezed Baekhyun’s hand. “That’s not it. I don’t blame you for what happened, Baekhyun. I just… I just can’t be your Guide. _Anyone_ ’s Guide.”

 

\--

 

Until they _found_ a Guide for Baekhyun, though, Yifan agreed to stand by Baekhyun. He went with Baekhyun to register Baekhyun as a Sentinel, and he was also present at all of Baekhyun’s Sentinel classes.

 

Many Sentinels ended up working for the government, but Baekhyun already _had_ a job, and he wasn’t going to give up his idol life, so all he had to do was take controlling classes. Classes that taught how to get used to life as a Sentinel. Baekhyun also had a pairing session every week, with Guides who seemed compatible.

 

Every time, Baekhyun came back with a headache and curled up on Yifan’s lap instead, breathing hard as Yifan stroked his head, his long fingers carding through Baekhyun’s hair. Baekhyun and Jongdae had switched rooms for the time being, and Baekhyun had pushed their beds together in the center. “Will you tell me why you won’t be my Guide?”

 

Yifan shook his head. “Sorry.” He whispered, keeping his hand resting on Baekhyun’s cheek. “I… Sorry.”

 

“I won’t hurt you, duizhang.”

 

“I know. I just… I just can’t.”

 

\--

 

The process continued for another few weeks. The other members got used to Baekhyun being a Sentinel, and Baekhyun gradually got used to his newfound powers enough that he was able to joke around with it.

 

But still, every week, he came back home from his pairing session with a headache, and Yifan kept Baekhyun’s head on his lap, stroking his cheek until his body calmed down. Every time, Baekhyun asked Yifan if he’d be his Guide, and every time, Yifan refused. “I think I love you,” Baekhyun told him, quietly, one day, staring up not at Yifan but past him onto the ceiling.

 

Yifan flinched. “I know,” he said, and Baekhyun snorted. He played with Baekhyun’s hair for a bit before finally sighing. “I had a Sentinel, when I was in Canada.  We imprinted by accident. Both of us were so young. But we lasted for a long, long time. And he was – he was the best I thought there could be. He was so nice to me, and we never – we never fully cemented our bond, but I thought he was the one. But he broke up with me. A break of an imprint is fine for Sentinels. It’s just like a breakup. But for Guides it’s different.” Yifan rubbed at his chest, the hole feeling bigger than usual. “It’s like someone dug out a part of me and never gave it back. I spent months crying.”

 

Baekhyun rose, spreading his hand across Yifan’s chest. He didn’t say anything, but he leaned forward to press his lips against Yifan’s hand. He said nothing after that and just curled up again, his head on Yifan’s lap.

 

After that, Baekhyun stopped asking Yifan about being his Guide. He still came back to Yifan every night, rubbing his cheek on Yifan’s hand and sleeping with his arm curled around Yifan’s shoulders. Yifan wondered if he should stop it, because every time their hands touched, he could feel Baekhyun’s feelings for him. There was anger there, too, for Yifan’s past that Baekhyun couldn’t control.

 

But both of them managed to ignore it. Yifan didn’t know if it was necessarily healthy, but he couldn’t deal with being someone’s Guide again and then being tossed away. He knew Baekhyun was sincere right now, but feelings changed. He’d already learned that the hard way.

 

\--

 

“You’re kind of like his Guide already,” Chanyeol pointed out, when Baekhyun was off in his Sentinel classes and Chanyeol finally had access to Yifan’s lap. Chanyeol had usually been the one rolling all over Yifan, but lately that had to change because of Baekhyun.

 

“No,” Yifan said, opening his mouth to take the piece of _ddukbokki_ Chanyeol forked up to him. Now that he thought about it, he was always getting fed by Chanyeol or Baekhyun. He decided not to dwell on it too much. “We haven’t imprinted. There’s a big difference.”

 

Chanyeol hummed in his throat. “I mean, I’m not complaining that you’re not his Guide. But can you keep going like this? Like what if he never finds a Guide for himself? Can you technically just keep doing what you’re doing now?”

 

Yifan nodded. “In theory, yeah. It only works for us because we’re together in the dorms all the time anyway. Usually only imprinted or bonded Sentinel-Guide pairs live together.”

 

Chanyeol frowned. “What’s the difference between an imprint and a bond?”

 

“Just stages. An imprint can happen accidentally, but a bond is – it can’t. It’s what a Sentinel and a Guide does when they’re sure they’re going to stay together. When they have complete faith in each other and they know they’re going to last forever. An imprint can be broken, but the only thing that’ll break a bond is death. Only a Guide can initiate it, and only a Sentinel can finish it. That way it’s fair, and both parties have to be really consenting. Except it doesn’t really work that way, though. Because Sentinels can abuse a Guide into doing it.”

 

Chanyeol shuddered. “But why would these people want to be connected to the Guides who don’t want it? I can’t see that working out for them in the end.”

 

Yifan nodded. “That’s why they kill the Guides.” His answer was met with a horrified silence. Yifan looked down to see Chanyeol staring up at him, his eyes stretched wide.

 

Chanyeol reached up, pushing the bowl of _ddubokki_ out of the way, and pulled Yifan down into an awkward hug. “Never become anyone’s Guide. Ever. Not even Baekhyun’s.”

 

Yifan wasn’t planning to.

 

\--

 

Yifan should have known that things weren’t going to always work out. He should have known that not all of Baekhyun’s misfired pairing attempts were going to end up with just a minor headache.   


He realized something was wrong the moment he picked up the phone from his manager. There was a lot of crashing noises in the back, and a lot of yelling. [Yifan!] Seunghwan yelled. [We need you here _right now_. The pairing went incredibly badly – just – Holy shit! Minwook went to get you, so just be ready.]

 

Yifan didn’t even bother hanging the phone up as he dropped it, running to get his coat. “What’s going on?” Sehun demanded, eyes wide. “What was that?”

 

“It’s Baekhyun,” Yifan explained, pulling the coat on. “The pairing must have gone badly. Baekhyun needs me.”

 

Sehun grabbed a coat for himself. “He’s not going to hurt you again, is he? I’m coming with.” Yifan didn’t try to stop him. He grabbed his phone off the floor and when it rang, he was already halfway out the door, Sehun close behind.

 

\--

 

Yifan flinched when Baekhyun crashed against the wall, breathing heavily. “Don’t come near me.” Baekhyun growled, digging his fingers into his own arms. He was pressing himself to the opposite wall, blood smearing from the cuts he’d inflicted on himself.

 

“Baekhyun,” Yifan said, taking a step closer. Baekhyun growled, and Yifan paused. “I can help. You _know_ I can.”

 

Baekhyun growled in response, his body twitching like he couldn’t decide whether to jump onto Yifan or cower away. Yifan knew it was Baekhyun fighting with his Sentinel instincts – the room was already a huge mess. The furniture that had once been in it were broken, shattered into pieces or twisted beyond recognition. Every moment that he took longer would probably mean more pain for Baekhyun, so he took another step forward.

 

“Stop,” Baekhyun croaked. “I can’t hurt you again. I won’t. I promised. I can’t.”

 

Yifan couldn’t help but smile. “You won’t hurt me. You know that.” Baekhyun’s eyes rose to meet his, and before Yifan could react, Baekhyun was stepping forward, faster than Yifan could respond. Baekhyun’s hands gripped the front of his shirt and Yifan was pulled downward, Baekhyun’s lips seeking his.

 

Yifan let it happen. Baekhyun’s grip loosened on his shirt and Yifan raised his arms to catch Baekhyun as he fell. “Hey,” Baekhyun said, as Yifan pushed up his torn clothes so he could look over the cuts. Baekhyun was already healing.

 

“Hey,” Yifan smiled back, rubbing his thumb on Baekhyun’s cheek. “See, didn’t hurt me.”

 

Baekhyun grinned back, resting his head on Yifan’s shoulder. Yifan ignored the doors opening, but Baekhyun growled low in his throat in warning, his arms wrapping around Yifan’s waist. Yifan patted his head, feeling a little too much like Baekhyun was an overprotective guard dog, and glanced back. “He’s okay, now.”

 

“He’s growling.”

 

“He’s fine. Baekhyun, stop being dumb.”

 

Baekhyun gripped Yifan’s waist tighter for a moment but sat up, combing his hands through his mussed hair. He let the orderlies check him over, sitting relaxed even as they shone flashlights into his eyes and made him open his mouth so they could take saliva samples.

 

The orderlies then turned to Yifan. “Guide number?”

 

Yifan stared. “What?”

 

“Your Guide registration number.”

 

Yifan felt his heart sink. He’d forgotten. In his panic to make sure Baekhyun was okay, he’d forgotten that Baekhyun got his pairing sessions in an official government facility. And that he was supposed to be keeping his identity as a Guide a secret. “I – I don’t have one.”

 

“You don’t have one,” one of the orderlies repeated, his voice flat. He started making notes on his tablet, glancing at Yifan. Baekhyun must have sensed something was wrong, because he frowned, reaching up to take Yifan’s wrist. Yifan was frozen in the spot.

 

When one of the orderlies tried to take Yifan’s wrist to get him to stand up, Baekhyun growled audibly, moving faster than they could to grab Yifan by the waist and flip him back so Baekhyun was between Yifan and the orderlies. “You don’t touch him.” Baekhyun hissed, standing. Even though he wasn’t tall, the orderlies backed away when he clenched his fists hard enough that his nails were digging into his palms and sending droplets of blood down onto the floor.

 

No one stopped them when Baekhyun pulled Yifan to his feet and marched out the door. Sehun greeted them with wide eyes, glancing back at the orderlies that were whispering frantically to each other. “You brought Sehun along?” Baekhyun asked, an eyebrow raised.

 

“I _came_ along.” Sehun snorted. “I’d argue this point with you, but it looks a little like we need to get out of here.”


	2. Chapter 2

It wasn’t illegal for a Guide not to report their status. Sentinels were actually dangerous if they were left, so all Sentinels were mandated by law, but Guides barely posed any kind of threat to society. Some people were worried that Guides were able to ‘read minds’, but even the most sensitive Guide couldn’t do that. Sure, a lot of strong Guides could read emotions without the necessary touching – Yifan was one – but it was also pointed out that registering Guides wouldn’t really stop them from being able to read emotions.  

 

All the same, it was strongly recommended.

 

“No,” Joonmyeon said to the person at the door, as Yifan watched anxiously. “We already said he’s not going to register.” Joonmyeon would have slammed the door in his face, Yifan thought, except Joonmyeon was too well mannered for that. Baekhyun’s eyes were narrowed, and he’d already broken a few cups because he kept gripping them too hard.

 

“You don’t have to keep answering the door,” Yifan said tiredly, sinking into the seat when Joonmyeon returned. “I’ll do it, next time.”

 

Joonmyeon frowned. “Don’t worry about it. I don’t feel comfortable letting you deal with them. Some of them are super shady. I feel like they might just snatch you away if they get the chance.”

 

“I wouldn’t _give_ them the chance,” Baekhyun hissed, flexing his fists. He was his usual bright self until the visits from the government who tried to bug Yifan into registering himself. He pushed Chanyeol’s head off Yifan’s lap and wrapped his arms around his waist, burying his head in his stomach. Chanyeol protested and kicked out, but Baekhyun paid him no heed.

 

Yifan rubbed the back of Baekhyun’s neck, and didn’t say anything even when Baekhyun squeezed hard enough that it started to throb a little.

 

\--

 

Yifan quietly went to all of Baekhyun’s pairing sessions. He wasn’t taking anymore lessons, and he’d gotten more or less good at controlling himself so he wasn’t squishing metal door handles or shattering cups. Baekhyun wasn’t completely for Yifan being there, especially because he described the orderlies as ‘eyeing Yifan like he was a piece of meat’.

 

Yifan was pretty sure they just wanted him to register, but he didn’t say anything and just held Baekhyun’s head in his lap as he moaned through the headaches of a bad pairing.

 

It was going fine until a new unpaired Sentinel came into the building while Yifan was waiting for Baekhyun’s pairing session to finish. Yifan looked up from his phone when he saw a pair of sneakers in front of him. He winced when he felt the lust.

 

Guideless Sentinels and lust were never a good thing. Yifan tried to get up but he was caught by the shoulders and shoved down. “Fuck, you smell so good,” the Sentinel growled, burying his face in Yifan’s neck. Yifan flinched when he felt the Sentinel’s tongue on the scar Baekhyun had left.

 

“Stop,” he hissed, gritting his teeth and firmly planting his hands on the Sentinel’s shoulders. He managed to push the Sentinel away a little before the Sentinel growled, reaching up to grab a fistful of Yifan’s hair and yanking his head back. Yifan let out a surprised cry but brought his knee up straight between the Sentinel’s legs, making the Sentinel howl in pain and drop his hair. Yifan jumped up, but he didn’t get too far before the Sentinel recovered and grabbed his hair again, crashing him to the floor.

 

“Fucking bitch.” Yifan had never dealt with lust. He now wished he’d somehow been exposed to it so he might have prepared for this, but he froze when the Sentinel shoved his legs apart and the hand that wasn’t gripping into his hair grabbed onto the waistband.

 

That was as far as the Sentinel got.

 

Yifan looked up when he felt the weight jerk off of him. Baekhyun was standing over him, his eyes furious. Seunghwan helped Yifan up. “You okay?” Yifan nodded and turned so he could calm Baekhyun down, but Seunghwan held him back. “Let him be.”

 

“Hyung!”

 

“I don’t think you can calm him down right now, anyway.”

 

Baekhyun was brimming with so much anger Yifan thought he might be able to see it. He had the other Sentinel – who was bigger than Yifan – up by the neck. The other Sentinel struggled against Baekhyun’s hand, but apparently Baekhyun was stronger, because Baekhyun didn’t even budge when the Sentinel’s foot landed on his stomach. “You touch him again,” Baekhyun said, squeezing his hands enough for the other Sentinel to start gagging, “I’ll kill you.”

 

He threw the Sentinel to the ground with a growl and stalked over to Yifan. His expression softened immediately as he reached up to cup Yifan’s face, rubbing his cheek. “He bruised you…” Baekhyun sighed, pouting lightly. Yifan couldn’t help it. He laughed. “Did you also hit your head?”

 

“No, just… you’re so different.” Yifan took Baekhyun’s hand and placed his free hand on top of Baekhyun’s head. “How’re you doing?”

 

“I had a headache,” Baekhyun said, latching onto Yifan’s arm and steering him away from the quivering mass on the floor. Seunghwan glanced at him before stepping around him. “But I’m so mad that I don’t even feel that anymore.”

 

“It’ll come back,” Seunghwan snorted, digging the keys to the car from his pocket. Baekhyun climbed into the very back seat of the van first and kicked the middle seats down so Kris could get in easier. “You’re gonna _break_ those seats.”

 

Baekhyun rolled his eyes. “I took those moderating lessons for a reason, okay.” He grinned up at Yifan and patted the seat next to him. Yifan usually never sat in the back because they always cramped his legs, but Baekhyun had pushed the middle seats forward to make room for Yifan’s legs. Baekhyun dropped his head on Yifan’s lap, looking up with a bright smile on his face. If Yifan didn’t know, he’d never have guessed Baekhyun had lifted a man about twice his size off the floor and threatened him just five minutes ago.

 

Yifan had seen the possessive side of Sentinels before, so he hadn’t said anything about it. Instead he placed his hand on Baekhyun’s forehead and Baekhyun sighed, nuzzling happily into his hand and letting his eyes flutter shut. “I love you, duizhang,” he whispered, half asleep, and Yifan just rubbed his cheek in response.

 

\--

 

SM Entertainment had pretty much kept Baekhyun’s Sentinel status under wraps. It wasn’t too difficult, considering Baekhyun looked like a puppy. Sasaengs _did_ see them frequenting the Sentinel classes often, but with Yifan tagging along all the time, they guessed what couldn’t be further from the truth: Yifan was the Sentinel and Baekhyun was his Guide.

 

They all laughed at the rumors, but things got a little worse when people started trying to cut Yifan so they could see if he’d heal up right away. Yifan kept his healing arm securely under long sleeves and jackets so he was able to avoid most box cutters or sharp nails, and his Guide abilities allowed him to steer away from those with overly malicious intent. Baekhyun kept Yifan close by so he could fend off attempts. Even when Baekhyun wasn’t available, for when M went to their schedules in China, the other members kept a sharp eye.

 

“That was stressful,” Jongdae sighed, collapsing into the airplane seat. “Yifan hyung, you didn’t get cut, right?”

 

“I don’t think so.” Yifan drew up his sleeves. Jongdae winced at the sight of purple bruises and red scratches, but none of them were deep enough to actually break skin. “I’m okay.” He jumped when his phone vibrated in his pocket. It was Baekhyun. “I’m not hurt.”

 

[Actually not hurt, or just not cut?]

 

“Just not cut,” Yifan amended, looking over his bruised arms. “You can ask Jongdae.” Baekhyun made a noise in the back of his throat. Yifan wasn’t sure if it as the best idea right now for him to be leaving Baekhyun, but he was going to be back before the week was over, and Baekhun hadn’t needed him unless it was after his pairing sessions. “Are you going to be okay?”

  
Baekhyun snorted. [I should be asking you that. Don’t let your guard down, all right? Don’t go anywhere by yourself. Take Zitao with you everywhere.]

 

“I’ll be fine. I gotta hang up.”

 

[Call me when you get back to the hotel.]

 

“I promise.”

 

He shut the phone off and leaned back in his seat, rubbing his face drily. Minseok glanced at him from across the aisle. “You two should just date officially. You already are, in all senses. What’s keeping you from becoming his Guide permanently?”

 

Yifan stared down at his phone. “I just..” He squeezed his eyes shut.

 

“Baekhyun won’t hurt you,” Minseok said, his voice gentle.

 

He meant physically.

 

\--

 

Everything went fine until Yifan stepped foot back in Korea. He’d been half-asleep, exhausted from packed schedules and flying back and forth, so he didn’t notice the intent to harm until Luhan cried out, “ _Yifan_!” in panic.

 

He felt a hand grab at his shirt and yank him back, but he realized it’d be too late the moment he saw the glint of the box cutter. He cringed back but it tore through his sweater, slicing his skin from just below his ear down to his collarbone. Jongdae was holding him, his eyes blown wide, and there was screaming everywhere. There were girls on top of other girls, trying to grab at his assaulter, and Luhan was already by his side, pressing his hand to the cut.

 

It wasn’t deep – Jongdae had pulled him back far enough and he’d cringed backward just in time for the cut to be just a scratch, but there was more blood than he could have thought possible for something that just stung.

 

Hyunkyun started yelling, pushing girls aside so he could pull Yifan through. “Let me see!” Hyunkyun yelled, and Luhan pulled his hand away. Hyunkyun cursed. “Come on, come on.” Yifan managed to make it to the van. Hyunkyun pulled his hand away again as Minwook took the wheel.

 

“I’m okay,” Yifan said. “It’s just a scratch. Jongdae pulled me back just in time.”

 

Luhan was shakily wiping his hand on the tissues Yixing was handing him. “What if it was infected with something?”  
  
“We’re heading to the hospital. You guys don’t mind, right?”

 

“Mind?” Yixing repeated, sounding offended. “Yifan-ge’s hurt and you’re asking if we _mind_ taking him to the hospital?” Minwook chuckled apologetically in response.

 

Yifan spoke up again. “I’m fine, but we should call Baekhyun before he sees it online first.”

 

Just as he spoke, Minseok’s phone rang shrilly. “Well,” Minseok said, fishing the phone from his bag, “too late for that.”

 

\--

 

“I’m _okay_ ,” Yifan repeated for what felt like the hundredth time, when Baekhyun came crashing into the hospital room, the other K members right on his heel. “Just a scratch. I didn’t need stitches. Nothing infected.”

 

Baekhyun stomped over to Yifan’s side, his hands gripping Yifan’s shirt. The shirt tore under Baekhyun’s grip, but Yifan didn’t say anything – it was cut anyway. Yifan brought Baekhyun’s hand to the bandage slapped over the cut. Baekhyun peeled it off, and sighed when he saw Yifan was right – it was really just a shallow cut.

 

He sat on the bed, resting his head on Yifan’s uninjured shoulder. “I wish I could heal you.”

 

“That’s Yixing’s power,” Chanyeol spoke up, and Baekhyun laughed shakily.

 

\--

 

It didn’t really surprise Yifan when Baekhyun caught the arm of a fan who was trying to cut Yifan again, apparently unsatisfied with what they didn’t see. Baekhyun drove the box cutter into his arm without even blinking an eye.

 

There was a stunned silence for a second, and then the airport lobby was filled with a loud shriek. Kyungsoo, who was right in front of Yifan, muttered, “Did he really have to do that?”

 

Baekhyun glanced over briefly at Kyungsoo before letting the box cutter go. “Here.” He shoved his arm up into the stunned girl’s face. The wound was already starting to close. “I’m the Sentinel. Leave duizhang out of this.”

 

There was another stunned silence, and before the crowd could recover, Baekhyun had grabbed Yifan’s hand and shoved him toward security, leaving an exasperated Joonmyeon to deal with the roar that rose afterward.

 

Baekhyun himself seemed like he didn’t really care for what was happening outside. Yifan took his arm and calmly wiped at the blood that had yet to dry. The cut was already closed to a scar, and even the scar would be gone by the morning tomorrow. “Don’t do that again,” Yifan warned, even though he’d expected something like it to happen.

 

Baekhyun snorted when Joonmyeon came to sit next to him, looking like he’d run a marathon. “Not going to promise that.”

 

Hyunkyun came and sat down next to Baekhyun and started to yell at him, but Baekhyun only grinned at Yifan. Yifan rolled his eyes and let Baekhyun rest his chin on his shoulder. “You’re in a good mood,” Hyunkyun sighed, rubbing his face. “Nice to know _you_ ’re happy, when the rest of us are going to have to clean this up.”

 

Baekhyun rolled his eyes. “At least no one’s going to try to hurt Yifan anymore. That’s a good thing, right?” Hyunkyun snorted and smacked Baekhyun’s back, but Baekhyun only snickered and turned so he could rest his cheek on Yifan’s shoulder.

 

\--

 

By the time they’d landed in China, their label had already released a statement about how Baekhyun wasn’t very concerned about his status. There was also mentioning of Yifan getting hurt by one of the fans, and Baekhyun decided he couldn’t just sit back and watch while Yifan took all the blows.

 

“Makes you sound like some sort of a hero,” Kyungsoo noted, raising an eyebrow as they crowded around Joonmyeon’s laptop.

 

Baekhyun grinned at him. “I _am_ a hero.” He wrapped his arms around Yifan’s waist and buried his face into Yifan’s shoulder. “Duizhang’s knight in shining armor.”

 

Sehun snorted. “You mean his dog?”

 

Baekhyun kicked him hard enough to send him sprawling to the floor.

 

\--

 

All the interviews had obviously been newly written to include Baekhyun’s Sentinel status, but Baekhyun answered all the questions with a bright smile. When asked about his Guide, Baekhyun kept his gaze steady and forward and said, “I’m still in pairing sessions.”

 

“To be honest,” Joonmyeon told Yifan after the interviews were over, “I thought he was going to say you were his Guide. Or at least look your way, or something.”

 

Yifan snorted. “He’s a professional, Joonmyeon.”

 

Joonmyeon rubbed his temple. “Yeah, I know. But he’s also like a kid sometimes. I think he learned more aegyo than usual because of this Sentinel business. Like he’d break a cup and then blink his puppy eyes at me because he doesn’t want to get scolded.”

 

Yifan snickered. He knew exactly what Joonmyeon was talking about. He’d walked in once when Baekhyun had gripped the remote control too hard during a movie and it had shattered in his grip. He’d flinched, looked up and saw Yifan, and pulled his puppy eyes. Yifan had ended up being dragged to the nearest E-mart so they could buy a remote control before anyone else noticed. “He’s adapting to it pretty fast.”

 

Joonmyeon shrugged. “He was pretty fascinated with the whole Sentinel-Guide thing even before he became one. Also.. I know you don’t like being called his Guide, but you being there for him helped a lot I think.”

 

Yifan nodded, gnawing on his bottom lip. “Hey, Joonmyeon.” He said, his hand fumbling with his tie. “…What do you think will happen if I become his Guide?”

 

Joonmyeon looked surprised. He looked around, but no one else had heard, except perhaps Baekhyun with his sensitive hearing. Yifan glanced up at Baekhyun – sure enough, Baekhyun had frozen from his joking around with Yixing and Kyungsoo. Joonmyeon must have also noticed, because he cupped Yifan’s elbow to tug him out into the hallway, closing the door behind him and steering him to the stairs. Joonmyeon peeked out the hallway to make sure Baekhyun hadn’t followed, and once he was certain they were alone, he asked, “Do you want to be?”

 

“I don’t know.” Yifan answered. He fumbled with the cuffs of the suit they’d worn for the press conference, and sighed. “I’ve been thinking about this a lot. You’re all right. I’m basically his Guide already, and I know he won’t hurt me.”

 

“But you don’t mean physically.” When Yifan looked up, Joonmyeon snorted. “We’re not dumb, Yifan. You think we don’t notice when you look like you’re hurting? We want what’s best for both of you.” Joonmyeon crossed his arms across his chest. “Baekhyun likes you a lot. But if you’re unsure that’ll last, no one else can convince you. Why don’t you two try dating? You don’t have to bring your Sentinel or Guide mess into this.”

 

Yifan raised his eyebrow. As much as he felt dumb admitting it, he’d never thought about dating. He’d never done it before, not after the relationship with his Sentinel had just not worked out. “Okay.”

 

Joonmyeon looked up. “Okay?” When he saw Yifan’s face, he grinned, patting his elbow again.

 

“Yeah. I want to try it.”

 

\--

 

Baekhyun fought with Zitao to share the same hotel room with Yifan. “I need it,” Baekhyun reasoned, trying to wrestle Zitao without using too much force. “What if my headache comes back?”

 

“But your headache won’t!” Zitao whined, “You only get them when you had a pairing session. I always room with Yifan-ge in hotels! It’s tradition! Who’s going to protect me from ghosts?!”  


“Or,” Luhan said, snatching up Yifan’s extra keycard. “You two can room together, and I’ll room with Yifan.” He grinned when Zitao and Baekhyun turned to him, their jaws dropped open as Luhan tugged Yifan to the elevator, shutting the door before either could respond.

 

\--

 

“They’re like children, honestly,” Luhan said, tossing his suit jacket onto the bed and loosening his tie. Baekhyun and Zitao had called them about a hundred times. Luhan had confiscated Yifan’s phone and it lay blinking every time a new call came in.

 

Yifan rolled his eyes, tossing his own suit off so he could pull into a comfortable t-shirt and sweatpants. “Baekhyun’s going to break down the doors at this point.”

 

Luhan snickered. “Wouldn’t _that_ be a sight. But he’s not that stupid. You need a break. From all this mess.”

 

Yifan realized with a start that they were speaking in Chinese. Sometimes he got confused as to what he was speaking, especially with Luhan, who had a tendency to speak in Korean even when they were just with Chinese members. “A break, huh,” Yifan muttered.

 

“Yeah. From Korean. From being a celebrity. From being a Guide. From Zitao. From Baekhyun. From everyone.”

 

“Not you, though?” Yifan asked, chuckling slightly and raising an eyebrow.

 

Luhan huffed. “Of course not! Let _ge_ take care of you.”

 

Yifan narrowed his eyes and placed a hand on top of Luhan’s head. “Kind of small to be _ge_ , you don’t think? And you’re only a few months older than me, anyway.”

 

“A few? You mean eight?” Luhan snickered, hitting Yifan’s hand off his head. “Anyway. Just relax. I’ll keep the puppies from bothering you.” He pulled a hoodie on before picking his phone up. “I’m taking your phone with me. Just use the hotel phone if you need anything. You brought your laptop, right?”

 

Yifan nodded and waved Luhan off. Luhan checked if anyone was outside before quickly slipping out into the hall, and Yifan was met with quiet silence. He didn’t know why Luhan had suddenly decided that Yifan needed a break from everything, but he wasn’t complaining. If he closed his eyes and let his mind wander a bit, he could feel the floating emotions of the nearby people in the hotel. Most people were just tired. There were some families, excited to be on vacation. A group of people that were already drinking, giddy and relaxed on alcohol. A few people having sex, but Yifan stayed away from the lust.

 

He latched onto the excitement. He pushed away the tiredness of the parents and let himself latch onto the purity of what the children were feeling.

 

It’d been a while since he’d done this. He’d always been good enough at this Guide thing to be able to feel around for emotions and latch onto them, but after his old Sentinel had left, he’d stopped. He pushed away the throb that his heart cried thinking about him again, and focused instead on the innocent feelings.

 

He must have fallen asleep, because a cool hand on his cheek woke him up. “Hey,” Luhan looked embarrassed. “Didn’t mean to wake you up. You looked so relaxed, so I wanted to take a picture.”

 

Yifan rolled his eyes but leaned into Luhan’s hand. He reached out toward Luhan’s emotions instead. Luhan, as an adult, didn’t have the purity of a child. But he _did_ have concern. And care. And a fond exasperation. All for Yifan. Yifan latched onto the care and closed his eyes, letting himself fall back into a lulled sleep.

 

When he woke up again, Luhan was still there, except he’d managed to maneuver both of them so he was sitting on the bed, Yifan’s head on his lap and his hand resting on his cheek while he browed his laptop with his free hand. “Oh, hey.” Luhan grinned, tapping his fingers on Yifan’s cheek. “Had a nice sleep?”

 

Yifan grunted but didn’t make a move to get up. “How long was I out for?”

 

“Not long.” Luhan said, rubbing Yifan’s cheek with the side of his index finger. “Maybe a couple of hours? We missed dinner, though. I didn’t want to wake you up because you looked so peaceful. Hyunkyun says just get room service.”

 

Yifan didn’t bother getting up. Luhan’s fingers were cool on his cheek, and he was still riding on the waves of the warmth of Luhan’s concern for him. “Can I sleep again?” Yifan asked, his voice already bogged with sleep.

 

“Yeah, go ahead. You aren’t hungry?”

 

“No. Do you have to get up?”

 

“I’m fine.” Luhan rubbed his cheek again. “You big baby.” There was a slight laughter in his voice and Yifan latched onto the fond amusement instead, feeling it wash over him warmly and lulling him back to sleep.

 

When Yifan finally properly woke up, he realized it was early morning. Luhan was asleep, his hand resting on Yifan’s cheek, and Yifan carefully lifted his head. Luhan frowned lightly and mumbled, and Yifan winced. His leg had most probably fallen asleep. He rubbed Luhan’s hand in apology and checked the clock. 5:04 AM. Too early to do anything, and too late to go back to sleep.

 

Shower, he figured, digging through his luggage for underwear and toiletries. His mouth felt disgusting because he hadn’t brushed his teeth last night, so he brushed vigorously before stepping under the hot spray of a shower. He sighed and let his mind wander again. He flinched when he felt Baekhyun. He was awake?

 

Yifan scrubbed faster than he’d ever done before and came out of the bathroom. Luhan had dug himself into the blankets, but he spoke up when Yifan opened the door. “Where are you going?”

 

“Uh.” When Luhan sat up blearily and tried to glare, he rubbed the back of his neck. “Baekhyun.”

 

Luhan sighed and flopped back onto his bed, waving him off. “Wait, do you know what room he’s in?”

 

“I’ll figure it out.”

 

Yifan hurried out the door and down the hall. Chanyeol and Joonmyeon. Yixing and Minseok. Sehun and Jongin. Jongdae and Kyungsoo. Zitao and… Baekhyun. He wondered if should knock and risk waking Zitao, but the door jerked open and Baekhyun fell into his arms. “You smell nice,” Baekhyun sighed, reaching up to hug Yifan’s shoulders.

 

“Did you smell me?” Yifan reached to swing the door shut so they wouldn’t wake Zitao.

 

“Yeah.” Baekhyun took a deep breath through his nose and held Yifan tighter. “Duizhang. Be my Guide, please?” He whispered, pressing his forehead against Yifan’s cheek. “Please. I won’t hurt you.”

 

Yifan stared at the closed door, wondering if Baekhyun had his card key and guessed the answer was probably no. “Baekhyun,” Yifan sighed, rubbing Baekhyun’s back. “Let’s take things one step at a time. Will you consider being in a relationship with me?” He felt Baekhyun stiffen in his arms and felt the surprise. “Let’s start there. No Guide or Sentinel involved. I need to – I need to know for myself if I can deal with this.”

 

Before Yifan could react to the sudden soaring of glee from Baekhyun, Baekhyun had grabbed him, turned him around to push him up toward the wall, and he was standing on his tip toes, pressing his lips tightly to Yifan’s. Yifan cried out in surprise but Baekhyun muffled it, insistently pressing up into Yifan. But when Yifan pushed at his shoulders, Baekhyun pulled away. “Sorry,” Baekhyun laughed, not sounding sorry at all. He smiled up at Yifan. “I’m just – I mean, you’re a Guide, you must know how much I like you. We can put the Guide and Sentinel thing away. We’ll just be a regular couple.”

 

Baekhyun’s smile, as always, was infectious. Yifan snorted and ruffled his hair, smiling. “We’re in a hallway. Someone could have taken a picture.”

 

“But they didn’t. You’d know.”

 

Yifan snorted. “Only if I were paying attention.”

 

Baekhyun stuck his tongue out. “It’s not even 6 in the morning. No one’s awake.” He took Yifan’s hand. “Can I kiss you again, or is someone watching?”

  
Yifan rolled his eyes, but felt another smile spread across his face when Baekhyun kept grinning at him. “You can kiss me again.”

 

And this time when Baekhyun leaned up for a kiss, he was nothing but gentle.


	3. Chapter 3

“Does that mean no more rooming with Yifan-ge at hotels?” Zitao pouted, when Baekhyun told everyone at breakfast. “Who’s going to save me from ghosts?”

 

“Whoever your new roommate is,” Baekhyun said, grinning and latching on to Yifan’s shoulders.   


Joonmyeon rolled his eyes. “You’re like a dog. Or maybe a cat.” He turned to Yifan. “You’re going to feel like you’re raising a pet, or a kid. Not dating someone.” Yifan only shrugged, smiling as he rubbed his hand on Baekhyun’s cheek. Joonmyeon rolled his eyes and turned back to his food.

 

Baekhyun cleared his plate, and then two more. “Maybe I’ll grow taller. Duizhang’s tall because he eats a lot, right?”

 

“I don’t think you’re growing anymore.” Jongdae snorted. “You’ve been eating triple the amount of everyone else since you woke up as a Sentinel and your height’s stayed the same.”

 

Baekhyun stuck his tongue out at Jongdae. “Taller than you, though.”

 

That resulted in Jongdae and Baekhyun throwing insults back and forth at each other loudly enough that Yixing frowned, rubbing his temple. Yifan raised his hand to rub the back of Baekhyun’s neck, massaging it gently. Baekhyun melted under his steady rub, almost purring and leaning back. “No fair,” Baekhyun complained. “This is an abuse of Guide powers.”

 

Yifan snorted and took a sip of his coffee. “What Guide powers? That was just a massage. I would’ve reached over and done it to Jongdae too, but he’s too far.”

 

\--

 

Baekhyun sprawled on top of Yifan’s lap later that evening, freshly showered and smelling like his shampoo. “I’ve actually always wondered. Guides can calm Sentinels down from their rage, right? Does that mean you can actually make me feel things I’m not actually feeling?”

 

Yifan shook his head. “It’s not like that. I can’t _make_ you feel what you’re not feeling. That rage is unnatural and caused by your Sentinel senses being overwhelmed. And it usually means the thinking part of your brain has shut down. So what Guides do is they calm the overwhelmed senses. Usually that’s enough to stop the rampage, which is why you just fall asleep most of the time after a rampage. But sometimes, in extreme cases when it doesn’t work, we can also yank the thinking part of your brain back to consciousness. I can’t make you feel what you’re not, Baekhyun.”

 

Baekhyun smiled. “Cool.” He slid up, ducking under Yifan’s book so he could be nose to nose with Yifan. “Come on, stop reading. This is the first official night of our relationship! You don’t wanna do something?”

 

Yifan chuckled and closed his book. “It’s just our first day. What do you want to do?”

 

Baekhyun rolled his eyes. “I don’t know. _Something_.”

 

So Yifan tugged Baekhyun closer until their lips met, and he could feel Baekhyun’s smile against his lips.

 

\--

 

They found out they didn’t even have to date too secretly. If they were holding hands, fans who shipped them went crazy but didn’t suspect them actually dating. Baekhyun stole kisses only when they were certain they were alone. They shared hotel rooms all the time, and Yifan ignored the stains of arousal. Baekhyun couldn’t help it and he wasn’t the one going to be judging when he was in the same boat. They were both men in their early twenties with a raging sex drive.

 

So they just laughed at each other when they woke up in the morning, limbs tangled in each other, blushing at their unwanted arousal in the morning. Yifan usually slept stock still, so it was usually Baekhyun curling up around him, his morning wood pressed into Yifan’s thigh.

 

Yifan blinked up at the ceiling. Baekhyun’s arms were thrown across his stomach, their legs tangled together, and there was an insistent press to his thigh. He bit his lip and turned, hand landing on Baekhyun’s side. “Baekhyun,” he whispered, pressing his lips to Baekhyun’s cheek. “Baekhyun.”

 

Baekhyun opened his eyes blearily. “What time is it?”

 

“It’s a little early, but..” Yifan trailed his finger down Baekhyun’s side, swallowing thickly. “I want to do something for you.”

 

Baekhyun frowned lightly in confusion, but when Yifan’s hand lingered on the waistband of his sweatpants, his eyes widened. “Duizhang.” Yifan felt Baekhyun’s embarrassment, but there was an underlying hope. “You don’t – you don’t have to.”

 

Yifan smiled, feeling his own cheeks flush. “If I want to?” Baekhyun buried his face in Yifan’s shoulder and nodded, so Yifan slowly slid his hand under the waistband of Baekhyun’s boxers and cautiously pulled both his sweatpants and boxers down to wrap his fingers around Baekhyun.

 

He was surprisingly well endowed, and Yifan ducked his head to hide the flush spreading across his cheeks. “Talk to me,” Yifan said, trying to break the silence. “Tell me what you think about when you’re jerking off. Do you jerk off to me?”

 

Baekhyun laughed shakily, breathing hotly into Yifan’s shoulder. “Who else?” His breath hitched when Yifan’s fingers stroked down his shaft, long fingers curling tightly around the length. “I think about fucking you.” Baekhyun whispered, almost a confession. “Usually on your back. Your legs would look so good wrapped around me. Sometimes on your hands and knees.” He took in a sharp breath when Yifan started stroking up and down, shifting closer to Baekhyun. “Are you – have you been fucked?”

 

“No,” Yifan answered, and Baekhyun groaned hoarsely at that, hips hitching under Yifan's hand. Baekhyun's hips stuttered and he gripped Yifan's hips hard enough to bruise. Yifan leaned over to kiss him, and Bakehyun nibbled apologetically on his lips, brushing over the bruises he'd just pressed into Yifan's skin. "It's okay." Yifan mumbled, keeping his hand curled to keep the mess from getting on anything else.

 

Baekhyun let out a sigh and grabbed a corner of the sheets to wipe Yifan's hand off. "Hopefully whoever cleans up isn't too scandalized."

 

"I'm sure they must have seen enough things not to get scandalized by something like that." Yifan rolled his eyes, and then flinched when Baekhyun's hand slid under his own boxers. "Baekhyun!"

 

Baekhyun grinned at him, his hand curling around Yifan. "Tell me if I hurt you," he whispered, leaning up to kiss Yifan. "I don't want to grip a little too hard and damage anything."

 

"That's really scary," Yifan muttered against Baekhyun's lips.

 

"And you're still hard." Baekhyun noted, sounding a little gleeful. His slender fingers wrapped almost expertly around Yifan's cock, stroking a little roughly but not enough to hurt. "Have you thought about me fucking you?" Yifan shuddered at that, shaking his head. Baekhyun laughed, pressing kisses to his cheek. "But you're a Guide? You knew you'd most likely end up bottoming, right?"

 

Yifan's breath hitched. "It doesn’t - it doesn't _have_ to be like that," he argued. "I could've topped."

 

Baekhyun nibbled on his chin. "Did you imagine yourself as a top, though?"

 

The honest answer to _that_ is a no. Baekhyun thankfully didn't press further, tightening his grip a little instead and pumping until Yifan came with a low groan. Baekhyun grinned, wiping his hands against the sheets, and pressed his lips to Yifan's. "I love you, duizhang."

 

Yifan smiled, squeezed Baekhyun's hand and answered, "I'm glad."

 

\--

 

"Yo."

 

Yifan looked up to see Amber grinning down at him. "Sup," he greeted, scooting over in his seat to make room for her.

 

"I'm hearing things lately." Amber hummed, clicking her tongue. Yifan raised his eyebrow at her. "Like you and Baekhyun are dating."

 

Yifan shrugged. "You're hearing right."

 

Amber nodded, not looking surprised at all. "He's been smitten with you for ages. About time he owned up to it. There are rumors that you're his Guide."

 

“That’s not true.” Yifan snorted. He caught the wave of disbelief from Amber and gave her a look. “You don’t believe me.”

 

Amber crossed her arms and tapped her fingers against her elbows. “I dunno, Kris. The two of you are super close lately.”

 

Yifan rolled his eyes. “Could that be, Amber, maybe, because we’re _dating_?”

 

Amber shook her head, leaning back against the mirror of the practice room before tilting her head up to look at him. “No, that’s not it. You two look like there’s something else between you.” She glared at him, like she was expecting him to fess up to anything, but he just shrugged and went back to his phone. “Yifan.”

 

Yifan rolled his eyes. “Oh, is that supposed to scare me?”

 

Amber unfolded her arms and folded them again. She opened her mouth to say something, but stopped, frowning at something past Yifan. Yifan turned and was almost immediately tackled by Baekhyun, whose arms wrapped tightly around his waist. Baekhyun’s tackle sent both of them sprawling into Amber, who flailed around for balance, failed, and the three of them fell to the floor.

 

Yifan instinctively threw his arms out to cushion Amber’s fall, but Baekhyun was faster, twisting himself in the short duration of the fall to put himself below both Amber and Yifan. “Whoa,” Amber said, her eyes blown wide as she landed on top of both Yifan and Baekhyun. “Sentinel reflexes, huh?”

 

Baekhyun grinned up at her. “Yeah, but the two of you are still pretty heavy.” Amber grinned back and slid off. “Sorry about tackling into you guys like that. You okay, duizhang?”

 

“My pride is a little hurt, but yeah.”

 

Amber raised an eyebrow. “Your pride?”  


“Yeah, you know. Being saved by a kid half my size.” Yifan said, still sprawled on top of Baekhyun. “Even if you _are_ a Sentinel.”

 

Amber snickered at that. “Don’t think this conversation is over, Kris.” She stood up and dusted her shorts off. She left with that, throwing a fleeting glance at the pair of them still on the ground before leaving the practice room.

 

Yifan peeled himself off Baekhyun and pulled him up. “Thanks for that.” When Baekhyun tried to blink innocently at him, he snorted. “I know you heard the conversation. Not to mention I know you could have kept all three of us from falling if you wanted to.”

 

Baekhyun shrugged. “Even if you aren’t my Guide, you’re still my boyfriend. And I’m your knight in shining armor, remember?”

 

“Or,” Chanyeol shouted from across the room, “his dog!”

 

\--

 

Yifan should have figured the happy, fluffy dating was the calm before the storm. Baekhyun was tactile, and Yifan loved that. Baekhyun couldn’t go a few minutes without tugging on Yifan’s hand, lacing their fingers together, or pressing a secret kiss in their tinted van.

 

Yifan initiated, sometimes, brushing his hands down Baekhyun’s arm and taking his wrist in a gentle grip while they were walking. Or backstage, when everyone else had filed out, Yifan would lower his head and brush his lips across Baekhyun’s forehead.

 

They were currently in the back seat of the van, Baekhyun grinning at him as he weaved their fingers together. Yifan grinned back, ducking down to press his lips against Baekhyun’s cheek. “Gross, you guys.” Sehun complained. “Why did I get stuck sitting back here with these two?”

 

“Because you lost at rock-paper-scissors,” Jongin snickered, putting his earphones in. “And you’re supposed to be keeping them from having sex in the back seat.”

 

Baekhyun rolled his eyes. “We’re not going to have sex in the back seat, you idiot. And we’re just holding hands. Grow a pair. Also, we’re home.”

 

Sehun groaned comically, throwing his hands up into the air in a mock-hallelujah. “Brat,” Yifan said fondly, reaching over to ruffle his hair. Sehun beamed at him, but stuck his tongue out at Baekhyun, and Baekhyun pinched his side.

 

The middle row clambered out quickly and Sehun followed rapidly, tugging Yifan’s hand out. Yifan stretched, waving with a smile to the few fans who had been hanging around. He turned to help Baekhyun out of the car, but a hand to his shoulder made him turn. He was used to fans touching him to get his attention, and he plastered a smile onto his face as he turned.

 

The smile froze. “Kevin,” the man said, smiling broadly at him. Yifan felt Baekhyun’s confusion and wariness from behind him. “I was hoping I could see you if I came here. You’re kind of a hot commodity around here. No one would believe me when I said I was your friend from Canada.”

 

“Joshua.” Yifan breathed, his eyes wide. He clenched his fists together to keep his hands from shaking. “What – what are you doing here?”

 

Baekhyun grabbed Yifan’s wrist and tugged him backward. He glared up at the man, taller and braoder than Yifan, and the man smiled back at him easily. “Hello,” he greeted. “You must be… I studied this. Baekhyun? Baekhyun, right? The Sentinel.”  


“You studied? Joshua, what…” Yifan shook his head, trying to steady himself. The others hesitated, but Chanyeol and Zitao hovered nearby, Zitao standing defiantly by Yifan’s side and glaring up at this new man.

 

Joshua held up his hands with an amicable grin. “There’s no need to be wary of me. Kevin, tell them.” When Yifan hesitated, Joshua smiled. “You’re that surprised seeing me? I’m Joshua Pryde, Kevin’s friend from Canada. Just like Baekhyun… I’m a Sentinel, too.”

 

And suddenly, everything clicked into place.

 

\--

 

“You’re not worried?” Sehun demanded. “He’s obviously an ex!”

 

Baekhyun fought hard not to crush the can of beer he was holding. He wished they had soju in the fridge. Or maybe even some whiskey. “I am worried. But what the fuck can I do? I can’t go chase him out there and cause a scene.” There was enough coming up already on the internet boards about whether Yifan was a Guide or not, because he was with Baekhyun so often and now there was this new Sentinel from his past.

 

Baekhyun gritted his teeth. Kevin. The name felt unfamiliar to him - Yifan had always been Yifan or Kris to him. Kevin was his name from the past. Something he didn't use, not in Baekhyun's life. "I don't like him," Minseok muttered. "There was something off about him."

 

Baekhyun thought the same, too, except Yifan probably could feel if he had other intentions better than any of them could. He took the last swig of the can and opened another one. Luhan Joonmyeonis tongue. "Are you going to be okay?"

 

"I'm not going to get drunk." Baekhyun answered, frowning at the new can. "Gonna need a lot more alcohol to do that. Sentinel now, remember?"

 

Yifan's old Sentinel. Joshua Pryde. Baekhyun gripped the can a little too hard and it crushed in his grip, beer spilling over the sides onto his hands. No one said anything.

 

\--

 

Yifan rubbed his hands onto his jeans. "What are you doing here? Did you come to visit?"

 

Joshua smiled, sipping his beer. Yifan played with his own cup, filled with beer he hadn't even touched. "I came to see you. I had no idea you'd got this big."

 

"I didn't know I would, either," Yifan whispered, fumbling with the cup. He took a sip and decided it wasn't the best idea he had, to be drunk when Joshua was right next to him. "Why are you here? How's Kathy doing?"

 

Joshua's face darkened, and Yifan cringed at the emotion from Joshua. He couldn't figure out what it was, but Joshua bowed his head. "She passed away. Car accident."

 

Yifan felt his blood chill. "She.. passed away?"

 

"Yeah. We were hit by a drunk driver. I tried to put myself around her, but... the car was totalled. I got pretty cut up, too." He drew his sleeves up to reveal his arm full of criss-crossed, raised scars. "I still have the scars, and you know how fast we heal."

 

Yifan swallowed thickly, nodding. "Wait, how long ago... was this?"

 

"A little over a month."

 

"And your scars still haven't healed?" Yifan asked, frowning and reaching out to touch Joshua's scars. He remembered how Baekhyun's cut at the airport had healed almost instantly, and the blade had sunk pretty deep. But then again, Baekhyun was a pretty new Sentinel. Did Sentinels' healing factors decrease over time?

 

Joshua shrugged. "They said it's because.. I lost my Guide. You know, the person I was Bound to."

 

Yifan drew his hand back like he was scalded. "The two of you Bonded?"

 

Joshua smiled apologetically. "I know. It hurts you to hear me talk about her. But.. yeah. Just recently. Listen, how are you doing? You seem to have a Sentinel... you've imprinted, at least?" Yifan blushed and hung his head, shaking his head no. "What? He looks like he really cares about you, though."

 

"He does." Yifan agreed, smiling despite himself thinking of Baekhyun. "And I'm.. I'm really glad to have him. He loves me a lot."

 

Joshua studied him closely. "But you don't love him."

 

Yifan flushed brightly. "That's not it. I like him, a lot. And I really am glad to have him. He knows I'm getting there. And he's willing to wait for me. That's all I can ask from him."

 

Joshua grinned, downing the rest of his beer. "Sounds like a catch. But as Beyonce says, if you want it, you've got to put a ring on it, you know?" Yifan looked up, frowning at the sudden mood change, but Joshua only smiled at him. "Come on. I'll go walk you back."

 

\--

 

"Aren't you going to ask?" Yifan asked, tiredly rubbing at his face.

 

Baekhyun hesitated, and said, "I want to, but I'm not sure if you'll be okay with it."

 

Yifan smiled and patted the space next to him on the bed. "You're my boyfriend. I think you're entitled to ask what you want." Baekhyun smiled uncertainly at that, but slid onto the bed next to Yifan.

 

"He was your old Sentinel, right?" Yifan nodded. "How - why'd he come? I thought he broke the imprint with you."

 

Yifan stared straight up at the ceiling. "He said his Guide died. They got into a car accident. He still had the scars." He paused, frowning lightly and rubbing his temple. "He came to see if he could get me again. There's no doubt about that. His intentions were loud and clear." When he felt the jerk of alarm and anger from Baekhyun, he turned to face him. "Baekhyun, I'm not going back to him." He said, linking his fingers through Baekhyun's. "I'm not going anywhere. The break really hurt. And I'd be lying if I didn't say thinking about him still hurts. But I don't love him anymore. I know I haven't told you that I loved you yet."

 

Baekhyun snorted. "I know why. Because you don't, yet. And because you don't want to just throw it around. I know, duizhang, I know. I'd rather you not just toss it around everywhere, either. I appreciate that." Baekhyun sat up and rubbed Yifan's cheek. "I don't mind waiting. I just - I..." He fidgeted with his hands, rubbing his thumb and forefinger together. "He's staying for a while in Korea, isn't he? I'm going to guess he's going to keep trying to see you. I - Could I come with? Every time he tries to see you?"

 

Yifan laughed. "Yeah. Actually, I'd like that a lot."

 

\--

 

Baekhyun had no idea what Yifan and Joshua were talking about. Yifan tried to talk in slow English, no doubt for Baekhyun's benefit, but Baekhyun also noticed that Joshua sped up the conversation and Yifan got caught up in it until he realized himself again.

 

And it sincerely annoyed him that Joshua kept calling Yifan 'Kevin' _._ Yifan himself seemed to be a little taken aback by the name, flinching lightly every time. Joshua no doubt noticed, and he also probably noticed Baekhyun's own scowl deepening every time. "Yifan," Baekhyun said, taking the glass that Joshua was filling up again. "That's enough, I think."

 

Joshua raised an eyebrow. "Kevin can hold his drink, you know," he said, talking slowly in English. Yifan translated quickly and Baekhyun scowled. He didn't bother answering, just took the shot again and slammed the glass upside down on the table.

 

"No more," Baekhyun told Yifan, in stern English that he hoped didn't sound too bad. Yifan chuckled and nodded, long fingers drumming the top of the shot glass that Baekhyun had put down.

 

"No more," he agreed quietly, tracing the edge of the glass. Baekhyun could watch that forever, he thought, smiling a little smugly at his victory. Yifan's hands were big and he was kind of clumsy with them, but times like these he was surprisingly delicate. "Joshua, I'm sorry to cut this short, but both of us have work tomorrow."

 

Joshua waved his concern away. "No worries."

 

"Joshua, how long are you staying in Korea?"

 

"For a while. You'll see me again."

 

Baekhyun gritted his teeth and hoped that they really wouldn't.

 

\--

 

"Holy shit," Sehun rubbed his ears. "Baekhyun, I have no idea why, but fans are screaming your name louder than usual. They sound almost panicked."

 

Baekhyun could hear it better than Sehun, and he rubbed his ears, wondering if he should go out and greet them or something to get them to quiet down.

 

"Where the hell is Kris?" Their manager muttered. "He's been off to the bathroom for pretty damn long."

 

Baekhyun looked up at that, scanning the room quickly. "How long has he been gone?"

 

"I don't know. Twenty minutes, almost? We're up for rehearsal soon. He's going to miss - Baekhyun, where the hell are you going?"

 

Baekhyun ran, his heart pounding in his chest. He pushed past security and the fans screamed, almost sobbing. "Oppa, oppa!" One girl shrieked when she saw him, "He took Kris-oppa!"

 

Baekhyun grabbed her and she shook her head frantically, bawling. "We tried to stop him, but he was so strong!"

 

Another girl added ,"He was this big white guy - Kris oppa looked like he didn't want to go, and they were arguing about something. He was fighting the guy, but he couldn't get his arm out. He told us to tell you, oppa, so we've been trying to call you..."

 

"He gave Kris oppa this huge bruise! I saw it under the hand he was holding onto Kris oppa - we tried  to stop him, but he was so strong, and then we couldn't get anyone's attention..."

 

"How long has it been?" Baekhyun demanded, and Joonmyeon, who'd come running after Baekhyun, was pale and silent behind him. "How long?"

 

"About ten minutes!" She sobbed. "We tried to stop him, oppa, we really did!"

 

Minseok gripped the girl's wrist. "It's okay, we know. Did you see which way he went?"

 

Another girl spoke up. "I know where they are! I put my iPod in Kris-oppa's pocket. It has a location tracker." She pushed forward and handed Baekhyun her phone with a steadily beeping red dot. Baekhyun grabbed her and hoisted her over the security fence. The fence where he'd been gripping was bent and twisted out of shape.

 

"Come with us," Minseok said, dusting her skirt off. "I think we need to go to the police."

 

\--

 

"I knew something was off." Yifan said, looking down at his tied wrists. He had a hand-shaped bruise under the rough binds, made from tearing his own shirt. They'll find me, you know."

 

"I've got time," Joshua chuckled, tapping his fingers on the steering wheel. Yifan said nothing, shifting surreptiously to hide the iPod in his pocket more.

 

"You've gotten good at hiding your emotions." Yifan said instead, rubbing his fingers together. "Did you kill Kathy?"

 

"She just wasn't you. You were so pliant to whatever I wanted, but she was defiant. But we'd already Bonded. Didn't have a choice. Left me with scars, but they'll heal once we Bond."

 

Yifan picked at the loose threads of the shirt. "And you think I'll initiate it?"

 

"Oh, Kevin. You're so cute, thinking you've got a choice." Joshua reached to grip Yifan's wrist, pressing hard against his bruises and sinking his nails to slice into the tender skin. Yifan fought his wince down and stared straight on.


	4. Chapter 4

 

\--

 

Yifan bit his lip to keep from crying out as the broken glass was shoved into the flesh of his thigh and twisted. His right leg felt like it was on fire, but he couldnt' do much but try to twist away from the pain. "You're ruining your lips," Joshua sighed, rubbing his thumb across Yifan's bottom lip, swollen from all of his biting. He brushed his hands over Yifan's ruined thigh, collecting the blood on his fingers. "All you have to do is initiate the bond, Kevin. I'll take good care of you."

 

Yifan snorted, mustering the last of his strength to glare up. "Yeah, you're definitely making me feel that. You weren't like this, Joshua. What happened?"

 

Joshua hummed and hoisted Yifan's good leg up, bending it at the knee so he could push his hands down between Yifan's bare legs. "I'll be better for you than that scrawny little thing, Kevin. What can he even do for you? Has he even fucked you yet?"

 

Yifan decided not to answer. He was starting to get a little lightheaded and nauseous, the blood loss from his leg catching up to him. He flinched violently when he felt Joshua's fingers slip lower, cradling his balls for a moment before slipping inside him. "Fuck you," Yifan managed, no longer even able to struggle. "Baekhyun is a hundred, thousand, a billion times the man you'll ever be."

 

"Mm," Joshua chuckled. "So tight. I could just fuck you open, but I'd want your first time to be on my dick when we're bonding. It _is_ your first time, isn't it, Kevin? You've always been a sweet, innocent little thing."

 

Little was something Yifan wasn't used to hearing at all.  He scrunched his face in distaste and spat into Joshua's face. The finger inside him doubled immediately, rough and intruding and burning badly. Yifan bit down on his lip, unwilling to give Joshua the satisfaction of making noise.

 

"Just give up, Kevin." Joshua chuckled, pressing their lips together. Yifan bit down and was awarded by a smack to the face.

 

"Baekhyun will come."

 

"Of course he will." Joshua snorted. "And how exactly will he find us, hmm?"

 

Yifan said nothing. The iPod in his pocket had been dismissed as his own, and Joshua had obviously never kidnapped anyone before, or he'd have thought of the tracking abilities in iPods. He looked up when the fingers inside him twisted. "He's my knight in shining armor, don't you know?"

 

"Damn right I am."

 

Yifan looked up, flinching in surprise. Baekhyun was standing at the door, the metal hinges bent under his fingers.  He was slightly out of breath and he wiped his forehead with the back of his hand. He threw whatever he was holding at Joshua, who caught it deftly. "We need to give that girl a prize. We'll give her free tickets and free albums, or whatever. Buy her dinner. Make her day."

 

Yifan tried to laugh but mostly failed. He heard Joshua's fingers squelch inside him as they twisted and slid out, and Baekhyun didn't miss the sound, either. His gaze hardened and before Yifan could even blink, Baekhyun was already dragging Joshua away. It was kind of a weird sight, watching Baekhyun overpower someone so much bigger than he was. "Are you okay?" Baekhyun asked, by his side immediatley and snapping the handcuffs around his hands like they were made of twigs. "Don't answer that, of course you aren't okay."

 

"Baek-"

 

"I hear him, no worries." Baekhyun said nonchalantly, twisting to grab Joshua's arm mid-punch.

 

Yifan didn't know how Baekhyun was so much stronger than the Sentinels bigger than he was, but he was incredibly glad as Baekhyun slammed the Sentinel to the ground. "Hapkido, remember?" Baekhyun said, as if reading Yifan's mind. Yifan tried to respond, but he couldn't even stop himself from collapsing to the floor, his vision swimming. He looked down at the throb in his leg.

 

His leg was covered in blood and it had pooled around him. "Wow," he mumbled, unable to get his voice any louder. "That's a lot of blood."

 

Then his world went dark.

 

\--

 

"Heyy, sleeping beauty." Luhan greeted, smiling at him and patting his hair. "You've been out for like a full day. They said your body went through shock because you lost so much blood."

 

Yifan blinked up at Luhan. "What happened?"

 

"Well, your kidnapper took you somewhere pretty far. Densely wooded. We couldn't relaly get the cars to go through, so Baekhyun just took the phone and kind of.. ran. He left enough trees broken for us to follow. By the time we got to you, though, he'd lost it."

 

Yifan felt his throat seize. "He - he lost control again? Where is he?"

 

Luhan flicked his forehead. "Listen to the end of the story when ge is speaking. We all thought he was going to go crazy again, also remember when you like, took a chunk out of you? So the police were talking about tranquilizing him, but then he just kind of... calmed down. He'd beat the other Sentinel to shit, but he just sat down next to you and looked at us. Joonmyeon went over and Baekhyun just looked at him and didn't do anything, so we all got the paramedics over and Baekhyun just watched. He fussed a little bit when we tried to lift you into the ambulance but he just climbed in. He's back, now. Just getting his own checkup." Luhan laughed when Yifan blinked up at him. "You're still drugged out of your mind on painkillers. You're safe now." He patted Yifan's hand. "Go back to sleep."

 

And so Yifan did.

 

\--

 

The next time he woke up, Baekhyun was the one greeting him. "Hey." Baekhyun said, smiling. It seemed a little strained, but he looked relieved. "How are you feeling?"

 

"Groggy," Yifan muttered.

 

"That'd be the painkillers at work." Baekhyun nodded to Yifan's leg, bandaged tightly at the thigh and elevated. "He did a pretty bad number on it, but thankfully there are no broken bones or tendons. You'll be walking and dancing soon." He fell uncharacteristically silent, and then sighed, rubbing his forehead. "Yifan, I didn't - I didn't see or smell anything, but  you had.. you had blood down there. Did he rape you, or.."

 

Yifan shook his head. "No, he - it was just his fingers." When he saw Baekhyun's face, he added quickly, "I'm okay, Baekhyun. Really. The blood wasn't from there. It was from my legs. I'm okay."

 

"But he still-"

 

"Baekhyun." Yifan said, cutting Baekhyun off. "I'm fine. Really." He offered Baekhyun a sleepy smile and Baekhyun laughed softly, brining Yifan's hand up to his lips. "I heard you didn't hurt me, even when you'd lost it."

 

Baekhyun shrugged, leaning forward to kiss Yifan's forehead. "I promised you, remember? I'd never hurt you."

 

Yifan smiled and nodded, already half asleep. "Baekhyun, we should imprint. And then bond.."

 

\--

 

After a week of being hospitalized, Yifan was getting restless. Incredibly. He moved as much as the cast on his legs would let him, driving Joonmyeon and Luhan up the walls with his incessant need to be outside. He’d never really thought of himself as active at all, but being cooped up on one bed makes him need to move.

 

He was still confined to a wheelchair, but at least now he was being weaned off the mpain medication and he was much more alert. Baekhyun was staring intently at him as Yixing sat peacefully, peeling an orange for Yifan to eat. "Baek?"

 

"When you first woke up, Luhan-hyung was sitting next to you. Remember that?" Yifan frowned and dug up as much as he could get. He didn't really remember much of his first few days in the hospital. "The second time you woke up, I was there. Do you remember anything you said then?"

 

Yifan shook his head honestly, feeling a little dumb. "Did I say something important?"

 

Baekhyun leaned back and ran his fingers through his hair. "Don't worry about it. I was just wondering how much you remembered. I guess you were more out of it than you looked."

 

Yixing nodded. "The doctor said that ge wasn't going to remember much of what happened while he was on painkillers, remember? Ge, here. Don't overeat them like last time." Yifan flushed a bright red. _That_ he did remember. He hadn't really thought he was hungry, but then Yixing had peeled apples and they'd tasted so good. He'd ended up throwing up because he ate them too fast.  
  
"That was by accident, okay?"

 

Yixing chuckled knowingly and waved his hand, already starting to hull the strawberries. "Take it slow." His voice was gentle, and Yifan reached out to Yixing's emotions. Yixing grounded him with his characteristic sereneness usually, and he found it again, calm and quiet. There was a bit of amusement, like always, under laid with concern and care. "Yixing," Yifan sighed, leaning back into his pillow. "Have I told you you're so grounding?"

 

"Multiple times." Yixing answered, smiling lightly. "But shouldn't you have a new ground in your knight in shining armor, now?" Yixing tilted his head toward Baekhyun.

 

Baekhyun was worried. A little annoyed, but a lot disappointed. Huh. Yifan looked up. "You're disappointed about something?"

 

Baekhyun blinked rapidly, and then cleared his throat. "No."

 

"Baekhyun, I'm a Guide. I can feel your emotions, remember?"

 

Baekhyun hesitated, then sighed, running his hand through his hair again. "Don't worry about it." When he caught Yifan's look, he cleared his throat. "You - Not now, duizhang."

 

Yixing hummed. "Ah, so should I leave? Give you two some privacy? I don't mind."

 

"Yes," Yifan said, at the same time Baekhyun said, "No." Yixing raised an eyebrow at both of them. Yifan glared and rubbed his undamaged thigh. Baekhyun sighed and rubbed his face. "All right, fine. Yixing-hyung, if you could give us a bit of time."

 

Yixing ruffled Yifan's hair, and then Baekhyun's, dropping the hulled strawberries on the plate with Yifan's oranges. "I'll let the others know you two need some time alone. Zitao and Chanyeol will be mad about it, though. I think they were thinking of coming this afternoon."

 

Yifan rolled his eyes. "I think they'll deal." Yixing chuckled and patted Yifan's cheek before leaving. Yixing's leave left a heavy silence in the hospital room. "So?" He nudged Baekhyun's hand. "I told you what happened with me and Joshua, but you can't tell me what you're disappointed about?"

 

Baekhyun glared sharply. "Can you imagine what this would have turned out to be if you didn't talk to me about him? You could be -" Baekhyun broke off when he saw Yifan's face. "Sorry. I didn't mean-" He groaned and slumped in his seat. "I'm mad, all right? I'm so mad I couldn't protect you, I'm mad he assaulted you and hurt you so badly, I'm mad that you're stuck in a hospital like this, I'm just - I'm just pissed off." He buried his face in his hands. He then muttered, "You told me we should imprint. And then bond."

 

 

Yifan's face flushed a bright red. "I - I did?"

 

"Yeah." Baekhyun said into his palms, but Yifan could see his ears were bright red, too. He fanned his face and Baekhyun looked up, his nose a blotched red from his blush and the way he'd pressed his face into his hands. "I was just - disappointed you didn't remember that, that's all. But I get it. You weren't really in your right mind, and I know how wary you are of imprinting or bonding - I mean, look how your first one turned out. Not that - Not that I'd hurt you! At all. But-"

 

Yifan leaned forward and shut Baekhyun up by pressing his lips to his. Baekhyun shut up, reacting immediately and moving to slide his hand over the back of Yifan's neck. Baekhyun grinned at him when they parted, the disappointment already gone and replaced by slight embarrassment and glee. Yifan snorted. "You're so simple."

 

Baekhyun grinned, his cheeks still red. "I can't help it. I love you so much." He reached for the forgotten plate of fruits. "Want some? Man, Yixing-hyung is good at peeling oranges. When Kyungsoo peels these things he leaves all the white stuff on and then yells at me when I complain…"

 

Yifan smiled, his chest warming. "...Baekhyun, I love you, too."

 

Baekhyun's hand stopped and he looked up, eyes wide. “…What?”

 

Yifan grinned, feeling out the stunned awe. There was disbelief, and a burst of happiness Baekhyun kept trying to put down. “I love you, too,” he repeated, reaching to lace his fingers through Baekhyun’s. “I’m sorry I took so long to say it.”

 

Baekhyun tackled him into a hug, and everything would have been all fine and romantic if the tackle didn’t pull Yifan’s stitches on his legs.

 

\--

 

“You two are idiots,” Minseok said quietly, giving him the most judgmental look Yifan had ever seen from him. “How’s the leg?”

 

“I’m on painkillers again,” Yifan slurred, fighting to keep his eyes open. “Is Joonmyeon yelling at Baekhyun?”

 

“Yes.” Minseok answered, rolling his eyes. “What got him so excited, anyway?”

 

Yifan sighed and fell back against the pillow, his embarrassment forgotten under painkillers. “I told him we should imprint and then bond.” He missed Minseok’s surprise, his eyes sliding shut under the bog of painkillers. “Can you get me Baekhyun..?”

 

\--

 

He woke up the next time to Baekhyun’s grinning face. “Baek,” he smiled, reaching groggily to ruffle Baekhyun’s hair. “Hey.”

 

“I shouldn’t be smiling,” Baekhyun said, trying to pull the corners of his lips down. “I hurt your leg. I sincerely thought Joonmyeon hyung would kill me. But – but I just can’t… it wasn’t a dream, right?”

 

Yifan smiled, leaning forward to cup Baekhyun’s cheek in his hand. “No. I said what I said. I remember.”

 

Baekhyun grinned, and for a moment he looked like he was going to pounce again, then caught himself, looking sheepish. “Okay.” He rubbed Yifan’s unhurt leg. “We can wait until you’re off painkillers again.” He leaned forward, catching Yifan’s lips in a soft kiss. “I love you, Yifan.”

 

Yifan smiled, leaning forward and pressing their foreheads together. “I love you, Baekhyun.”

 

\--

 

Yifan was discharged after two weeks. He still had to use a wheelchair, but he was at least out of the stupid hospital outfit. “You would,” Jongin said, rolling his eyes as he helped Yifan out of the car. “Only you would want to leave the hospital just because the gown is ugly.”

 

“Fashion is my life, okay?” Yifan answered, grinning. Jongin took most of his weight moving him to the wheelchair. “Where’s my knight?”

 

“He’s on the verge of burning down the kitchen,” Kyungsoo informed him. “Yixing-hyung and I said we’d do it but he was pretty adamant on making you food himself. The last I checked, he burned a hole through one of the pots.”

 

Yifan looked up, alarmed. “He wasn’t that bad before?”

 

Jongin sighed, pushing Yifan’s wheelchair up the ramp. “I think he’s nervous. Or maybe his Sentinel awakening messed with his cooking abilities. In any case, only Yixing-hyung was brave enough to stay with Baekhyun-hyung. The rest of us ran away to the M dorm.” When they were inside the elevator, Jongin cleared his throat. “Yifan-hyung, I know you and Baekhyun-hyung would probably want to jump each other – or at least, Baekhyun-hyung does… But remember your leg still has to heal.”

 

Yifan rolled his eyes. “What do you think we are, horny teenagers?”

 

Kyungsoo gave him a look. “Yes. You _did_ pull your stitches because he hugged you too hard.” Yifan didn’t really have a retort to that, but thankfully the elevator dinged at their floor. Chanyeol was poking his head out of the M dorm, looking rather comically fearful at the K door. “You look kind of stupid,” Kyungsoo told him, and Chanyeol looked over, a bright smile spreading across his face when he saw Yifan.

 

“Hyung!” Chanyeol cried, slipping out of the doorway, but before he could do anything, the K dorm’s door slid open.

 

“Duizhang!” Baekhyun grinned, wiping his hands on his pants. He ran over and took the wheelchair from Jongin. “I gave up on cooking and decided to just help Yixing-hyung instead.”

 

Yixing rolled his eyes, just now appearing from behind the K-dorm’s door. “I convinced him to. I might have saved your life, duizhang,” Yixing said, sincerely enough that everyone started laughing. “Come on, bring him in, Baekhyun.”

 

Everyone crowded around the dining table, and Yifan couldn’t help but grin. He’d missed this the most, while he was in the hospital – the rowdiness of everyone eating together. Joonmyeon handed him his spoon and chopsticks first, and Minseok complained about age order while Sehun laughed. Luhan was pushing chairs over so he could make room for Yifan’s wheelchair and Chanyeol was trying to set up the table except he just ended up getting in Kyungsoo and Yixing’s way. Jongin was shaking his head, laughing at the mess that was Jongdae and Zitao trying to fight over the same plate, and Baekhyun took his hand, grinning broadly. “Welcome back, duizhang.”

 

“Yeah. I’m home.”

 

\--

 

“You don’t know how?” Baekhyun asked, rising a little from his side of the bed. He looked amused.

 

“Well.. I told you. My first imprint happened by accident.” Yifan scratched his head embarrassedly. “I think if you just – really want to be together with the other person, it happens.” Baekhyun laughed and reached for Yifan’s hand, interlacing their fingers together. Yifan slid down, Baekhyun rising slightly to help him so he didn’t jar his leg too much, and they laid grinning at each other. “I love you, Baekhyun.”

 

Baekhyun pressed their foreheads together, tugging Yifan’s hand close to his heart. Baekhyun’s heart thumped heatedly under his hand. “I really want to be together with you, too.”

 

They spent the next few days just resting – their manager pointed out that they couldn’t exactly do much with Yifan still either unable to use one of his legs. Yifan usually slept most of the day anyway, and Baekhyun just stayed in bed, his legs tangled with Yifan’s, his arm pushed under Yifan’s head so Yifan could use it as a pillow, and his hand stroking the back of Yifan’s head.

 

“It’s kind of really sweet in a really domestic way,” Jongdae comments, poking Yifan’s cheek. Yifan’s frowning and mumbling against it but not waking, and Baekhyun swats Jongdae’s hand away. “Which is not what I expected from you guys. I expected like really intense, really kinky sex, every day.”

 

Baekhyun rolls his eyes and just snuggles his nose into Yifan’s hair. Yifan smells nice, and he wraps his arms around Yifan’s waist, tugging the taller closer to him. Yifan mumbles in his sleep again, but he doesn’t wake up. Jongdae mutters something about the sorrows of being single, smacks Baekhyun on the back of the head and Baekhyun hears him leave. Baekhyun grins, shifting so he can tuck Yifan tighter to his side, and he feels a jolt, like someone’s slammed him with electricity.

 

Yifan’s eyes slam open and Baekhyun can feel every breath Yifan’s taking, can feel the blood rushing under his hand. “Was – was that it?” Baekhyun whispers, and Yifan nods against his chest. They stay in silence, staring into space. It’s kind of like he’s hyperaware of Yifan’s presence next to him. Like he can hear every single one of Yifan’s heartbeats, can hear the rush of blood through his veins, can see the expanse of his lungs as he takes in a breath.

 

It seems to be different for Yifan, who reaches for him and takes a fistful of his shirt, breathing hard. “ _Baekhyun_ ,” Yifan moans, and Baekhyun sits up, sliding his arm so he can support Yifan’s head. “Can you – can you feel it?”

 

Baekhyun can. He can’t quite describe it, the feeling of being _connected_ somehow. Like if he can grab it, he’d tug, and Yifan would just come along on the other end. Except he can’t grab it, and he closes his fist in the air between them. “Can you feel it more than I can?” Baekhyun asks, pressing their foreheads together.

 

“Yeah.” Yifan breathes. “This is – it’s different from the first time. It wasn’t this intense the first time.”

 

Baekhyun nods. “This is an imprint.” Yifan nods in reply and Baekhyun bends to nibble on his lip. “It’s like no one matters except you.”

 

Yifan nods again, and he kind of looks like he can’t really get a bearing on himself, so Baekhyun lets him back down on the bed to catch his breath. He grabs at the air in between them again, hoping to feel something concrete there. “What are you doing?” Yifan asks, frowning.

 

“I dunno. I feel like something should be there connecting us. It _feels_ like something is there connecting us. I want to be able to pull you closer.”

 

Yifan laughs, still a little breathless, and pushes his body flush against Baekhyun’s. “It’s not something physical.” He rests his forehead against Baekhyun’s, and Baekhyun watches his face. Up close like this it’s kind of nerve wrecking how good looking Yifan is, like someone just took marble and carved him out to perfect proportions.

 

Baekhyun kisses him, something rushing through his chest, and Yifan pulls Baekhyun on top of him. “I want to – I want to-“

 

“I know.” Yifan says, simply, sliding his hands under Baekhyun’s shirt. “Me too.”

 

Sex with Yifan is less weird than Baekhyun thought it would be with the difference in their height. Yifan’s not exactly flexible, but Baekhyun helps him, folding long legs at the knees and pushing them to Yifan’s chest. Baekhyun’s kind of a tight fit into Yifan, and Baekhyun kisses the tears dangling at the ends of Yifan’s eyes and waits for him to adjust. “I love you,” Baekhyun tells him.

 

“I love you, too.” Yifan answers, smiling, and the way his eyes crinkle makes the droplets of tears clinging to the corners of his eyes roll down his face. Baekhyun rubs them away and he helps Yifan hook his legs behind his back, setting a slow pace at first.

 

It’s not long before he feels something reaching out to him. It’s not physical, just something between them, and he doesn’t know how he manages to grab it. The resulting shock is nothing like the imprint – this time it’s so raw and intense that Baekhyun has to stop to get his bearings.

 

And he can feel it. He can feel _Yifan_ , how happy he is, how embarrassed it is, how in _love_ he is, and Baekhyun kisses him just to feel the happiness throb organically, like it’s something that’s alive. Yifan’s smiling up at him. “Wow,” he says. “I didn’t know a Bond would be like this.”

 

“Can you feel me?”

 

“Yeah, but it’s – it’s different from before.” Yifan replies, his chest flushed. “Like I’m just full of you.”

 

Baekhyun smiles slyly. “You _are_ full of me.” He teases, pulling out and pushing back in to prove his point. Yifan lets out a long moan and _fuck_ , that’s so sexy. But he knows what Yifan means. He feels like Yifan’s just taken up residence inside him. Like they’re one person. He links their fingers together, presses their foreheads together and kisses him, setting a faster pace than before now that he _knows_ Yifan’s not hurting, because that want he feels across their bond isn’t just his.

 

Yifan comes first when Baekhyun unlaces one of his hands to grab his cock, pumping to match his thrusts, and Baekhyun groans, biting Yifan’s shoulder as Yifan tightens around him and sends him over. He bites down a little harder, tasting blood, but he’s also certain it’s what Yifan wants. He collapses on top of Yifan, not really bothering to pull out for the moment. “Gross,” Yifan mutters, but he wraps an arm around Baekhyun and pats his back.

 

“That won’t work on me,” Baekhyun says gleefully. “Because I can _feel_ your happiness.” He rubs the bite mark a little apologetically and rolls off, reaching to grab the tissues. He wipes Yifan down and wonders if he should do something about the bite, but Yifan brushes him off and tugs him closer.

 

“Kinky sex every day!” Jongdae yells through the door. Baekhyun groans, rolling his eyes, and grabs a plastic bottle of skin lotion to toss at the door.

 

Yifan laughs and Baekhyun scoots up to tuck Yifan’s head on his shoulder. They lie in silence, breathing each other in and feeling out the new Bond throbbing between them. “I think I got it.” Baekhyun whispers, and Yifan makes a noise confirming he’s heard. “You know. Why I’m stronger than all the Sentinels. It’s because I’m the good guy.”

 

Yifan laughs. “What?”

 

“You know. Good guys always win. I’m the good guy. Because I promised you, remember? That I’d never hurt you. And I’m your knight in shining armor. I have to be strong.”

 

Yifan snorts and flicks Baekhyun’s nose. “This isn’t a fairytale, Baekhyun.”

 

Baekhyun’s arms tighten around Yifan. “But I feel like I’m living in one. I’ve got the person I love more than anything else in my arms, and we’re Bonded for the rest of our lives. I won’t just not hurt you, Yifan. I’m going to protect you. I promise.”

 

And this time, Yifan thinks, he can really believe that promise.


End file.
